DAY 11: THE EASIEST JOB IN THE WORLD:

Sydney meteorologist - apparently. The weather since we have been here has been wet, very wet. This was the most rain that Sydney has received in the month of May in 20 years. We had been hearing all week that the worst of the rainstorms was coming this weekend, specifically Sunday. I’ve heard of weathermen being wrong and then there was today’s forecast. They were predicting everything from flashfloods to cyclones – yeah, cyclones. I don’t even know what that means so I was kind of looking forward to it and I didn’t plan anything for the day because I didn’t want to fight the weather. So what’d I wake up to? Blue skies and the Sun. I had to check with my roommate to make sure that it was indeed the sun since we hadn’t seen it in about 4 days.

I had mixed emotions. I guess my cyclone experience will have to wait but it was extremely nice to actually get to enjoy the weather. I ate breakfast (oatmeal and yogurt) on our porch. Then, later in the day myself and two others went to a really cool park near our apartment complex and threw the Frisbee for several hours. The park was really cool. More or less, it was just an open field but everyone had their dogs out and it was just a really cool environment. Made me want a dog I could take to the park – can’t wait to get my own when I graduate. It was really cool because were in a park but the Sydney skyline was there in the distance. After throwing the Frisbee we decided to climb up the large hill at the park – good choice. We were rewarded with a beautiful view of Sydney and an absolutely spectacular sunset. Yeah, three dudes watching the sunset at a park. Insert joke here.

Fittingly, after watching the sunset together, we decided to make dinner together. Hey, it’s cheaper AND easier. We went to the grocery store and made some tacos that were very good. Just yesterday, I discovered what Australians call ANZAC (Australian-New Zealand Army Core) biscuits (cookies, Aussies call ‘em biscuits). Apparently, they hold for 30 days and that’s what the soldiers would take with them. Knowing this, I did not think they would be very good. However, they are absolutely delicious. Here is a link to a recipe (http://www.aussie-info.com/identity/food/anzacs.php). I’m bringing Australia to America. Let me know if anyone tries them, I’m curious. We have gone through two bins from the grocery in two days. We kind of like them.

The other oddity at the grocery store is Kangaroo meat. They do eat it here. I’ve actually seen Kangaroo pizza on several menus. I almost bought it tonight. It comes in all sorts of cuts and is apparently a dark lean meat – think buffalo maybe?? Anyway, I am planning on buying some of it eventually and doing something with it. Kangaroo tacos perhaps? We will see. Well, here are some pictures of our view at the park. I only had my phone on me so the quality isn’t great but hey, I tried. I guess that is all for now. Let me know if you have any good Kangaroo recipes ☺


Sunset

Sunset

Sunset

and more sunset

Cheers!

DAY 10: COINAGE

Fact: It costs more than $.01 to make a penny. Fact: Australia doesn’t have pennies. Fact: This makes entirely too much sense for America to get rid of the penny. Fact: Bears eat beets. Bears. Beets. Battlestar Gallactica. (okay that one is from The Office but I thought I’d throw it in there).

Australia has a .05, .10, .20, .5, $1 and $2 coin and a $5, $10, $20, and $50 cash.
You should notice there is no $1 cash. It makes things complicated. The issue is that you end up with a pocket full of coins anytime you spend any money. This means several things. You end up walking around jingling the entire day. I think this is how Aussies tell who the tourists are. The Aussies all have change pockets in their wallet or wear pants that are so tight they don’t allow any room for jingling. The other issue is that the coins aren’t real money. Yeah, it’s true – because they’re coins they can’t possibly viewed as real money. It’s confusing because in America if you have a pocket full of change it is more or less just junk. In Australia if you have a pocket full of change, you might be rich. Anyway, us Yankees inevitably end up spending this “junk” change on random things because we’re used to a coin the size of a dime being worth $.10 and not $2. All of us students laugh at the pile of coins we have collected not realizing what we have.

Anyway, this “junk” change came in very handy today. First, I was walking back from the library and walked past a bakery called Baker’s Bun or maybe it was heaven – I’m not sure. It smelled unlike anything that has ever blessed my nostrils. Unfortunately, or fortunately, I have inherited the doughnut gene from my father. We used to go to Dunkin’ Donuts or Krispy Kremes on the way home from Pacer games and that is where it started. Now, he is a regular (he swears he’s not but we know otherwise) at Daylight Doughnuts – a bakery near our house. Well, I was in luck. I had some change in my pocket and since it’s not real money, I had the opportunity to purchase a doughnut. It was .80 for one doughnut. The doughnut was small but worth every penny. I mean coin. It was honestly the best doughnut I have ever tasted. It was fresh, warm and had strawberry frosting. If Blogspot had an “upload a taste” option I would share it with you guys but believe me, the doughnut is worth a 15-hour flight. You should come. I unfortunately didn’t have a camera on me but I will snap a pic next time. There will be a next time.

Then, later in the night 6 of us guys gathered up our change and went to a little hole in the wall pub called Scruffy Murphy’s. It is a small pub but has become popular with us Purdue students. One word: Seven Dollar Pitchers. Most places, a beer costs around 8 bucks, but at this place you can get a pitcher for 7. So us guys used all of our change to make the most of this deal. After spending sometime at Scruffy’s, we gave in and went to a nicer place around the corner that is called 3 Wise Monkeys. It was really cool. They had three levels with the top level being a dance floor and live band. We had a great time.

So the moral of the story: I don’t know that there is one. Again, I’m sorry. I have now blogged about pants and coins in my last three blogs. If you hate me for wasting your time, I understand but next weekend we are going on a surfing trip so perhaps they’ll get more interesting. OR maybe I’ll just blog about the weather or something ;). Until next time…

Cheers!

DAY 9: MORE WORK AND MORE PLAY

I had another exhilarating day at work. I worked on the same excel spreadsheet that I did the first day. I have now worked on that thing for about 12 hours total and have just passed the halfway point. It is just so much fun I can hardly stand it. In high school I was on newspaper staff and brainstorming for a new issue was always a dreaded activity. My teacher would often threaten to gauge her eyes out with a dull pencil and we could tell by the look on her face. I’d imagine I have the exact same look on my face when working on this project.

In related news, I took some pictures of the University and will post them a little later (I am at the café and don’t have my camera with me). It is a neat University. Lots of hills and wildlife – a completely different feel than what I am used to.

Needless to say, I was ready for a night out after spending eight hours staring at a computer screen. Making plans with a large group is painful. Everybody has different ideas and then nobody can make a decision on ONE idea. Our group of Purdue students proves this on a nightly basis. After debating on where to go for about half an hour we hopped on a bus and head to “The Rocks” - a neat little suburb in Sydney. Well, we did some (read: a lot of) wandering around and (finally) ended up at a bar called the Art Gallery Hotel. Apparently the bars used to call themselves hotels because it was easier to get a liquor license. Now, a lot of them have kept the hotel name, which complicates things at times. You should have seen the look I got at the front desk of the Marriott when I tried ordering a drink. In all seriousness, though the bar was very cool. It was super nice and had a little bit of everything including a restaurant and lounge upstairs. The music was good and the drinks were good (and expensive, like everything). Our group pretty much took over the dance floor and had a great time.

The best news of the day. I signed up for a surf trip next weekend and a trip to Cairns later in the program. The trip to Cairns includes Scuba Diving the Great Barrier Reef, a tour of the Rainforest and an option to sky dive or bungee jump. I can't wait. Until next time...

Cheers!

DAY 8: THE NO PANTS DANCE

So I needed pants. Well, I had pants. Lots and lots of pants, just not the right pants. The pre-departure information told me that my internship required “smart-casual” dress. I assumed that meant khakis and a nice shirt – a safe assumption. So I packed four or five pairs of khakis and my gray suit for my interview. First day on the job and I am told I have to wear BLACK pants with a Macquarie polo that they provide. Perfect. I had five pairs of khakis, a pair of gray pants and not a single pair of black pants. Normally, not a big deal. In Sydney, a big deal.

Sydney is expensive. Very, very expensive. For instance, a Vitamin Water costs $4.50, a can of diet coke costs $2.50 and a pair of black dress pants costs anywhere from $90 to $500+. I headed to the Queen Victoria Building Shopping Center in search of a pair of pants that wouldn’t cost me one of the legs I wanted to put in the pants. I hate shopping more than anything – maybe more than terrorism (it’s close). I will go to a store knowing I have to buy something and still return with nothing and then I will have to go back and force myself to buy it. It’s terrible. I hate it. However, the Aussies made it a little bit easier on me.

I know I have said several times how friendly the Aussies are but it really is incredible. The first pair of pants I saw was on sale for $129 and that was one of the best prices I had seen. So I tried the Levi Denim store as a last ditch effort. I found a pair for $100 and was about to settle for them but the Aussie who was helping me could tell I didn’t want to spend that much money. I don’t know if it was my attitude, my body language or me saying that I didn’t want to spend that much money that clued him in. So what’d he do? Instead of just saying sorry or saying that the pants were worth $100, which would help his store (this is what would happen in America). He recommended I try a department store in another part of the city. He turned away business to make help me out! He even explained where to find the best deals in the store. So I headed that way.

Which leads me to another example of how friendly the Aussies are. They are incredibly willing to help. I carry my backpack with me everywhere I go and am often just wondering around looking up trying to take it all in. Basically, the only thing I’m missing is a flashing neon sign that says, “hey, I’m a tourist.” Anyway, I haven’t carried a map since I’ve been here. I can ask anyone at anytime how to get somewhere and they will stop and talk me through it or even walk part of the way with me. It’s astonishing. I don’t think anyone in New York or Chicago would do the same. So after some wandering and some inquiring I found the store. It was huge! I went up to the fourth floor and found some more pants. But thanks to the help from the Levi’s guy, I knew where to find the deals and sure enough I found the clearance rack tucked away in the corner. I found a pair of pants for $49.95 – more than half of what I was about to settle for. In case anyone is wondering, I wear a 97R Shortleg (thanks for those, dad) in Australia. I don’t know what that means beyond the fact that the R stands for ReallyReallygoodlooking – I think.

So I was ready to purchase these and then on the way out I saw these…

Green corduroys with ducks/quails stitched into them...

This is why I suck at shopping. I honestly spent 20 to 30 minutes contemplating buying these. I don’t know if I will ever have the chance to buy another pair of green corduroys with ducks stitched into them and you only live once. Can you imagine? The girls would have FLOCKED to me (get it? Get it? Like flocked as in came to me and ducks fly in flocks. Oh man, hilarious I know). I ended up talking myself out of it and the more I think about it the more I wish I would have but oh well. I might be back ;).

Why did I just waste your time with a blog entry about pants? Well, I wish I could make up some cool theory and make this all relevant to life or something but I can’t. So, I’m sorry. If it’s any consolation, I wasted my time too. What I can tell you is that the Aussies are really really friendly, I got the right pair of pants and if you ever have the chance to buy a pair of green corduroys with ducks stitched in, just do it. I have work tomorrow so I’m sure I’ll have tons of exciting things to share (sarcasm). For now, here are some pictures.


The Queen Victoria Building which is actually a huge shopping Center. Pretty impressive.


Sorry, I really did try rotating this picture. Obviously it didn't work. Just turn your head sideways and admire the architecture.

Cheers!

DAY 7: STATE OF BOREDOM AND STATE OF ORIGIN

Macquarie University and myself have very different ideas of fun. If you read my previous post you know that my bosses referred to their office as “Fun City”. It’s a misleading name because when they say fun they actually mean not fun. Unless of course, your idea of fun is excel spread sheets, making copies, reading manuals and filing. If this is your idea of fun it is very very fun.

Here’s how my day went (I’ll keep it quick). Showed up at 9:30 after a two hour commute. Read three manuals. Filed tons of paperwork. Put same paperwork into an excel spreadsheet, made copies and filed some more. My cubical is in a corner – I think I had two interactions with human beings the entire day. It was exciting. It was as much fun as defending goal against this kid (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCUUC0S4lo0 – I love that video more than anything). What made things worse was the fact that the entire day I was looking forward to State of Origin. Needless to say after doing mundane tasks for about 8 hours I was ready to kick back with some friends, enjoy a beer and watch goliath-sized men beat the crap out of each other.

The game was quite an experience. I have been fortunate enough to have been to 2 Superbowls, an AFC Championship Game, a Final Four and National Championship game, an NBA Finals Series, the last game at the Metrodome (a playoff game against the Yanks), several Indy 500s, several Brickyard 400s and 2 night races at Bristol (something all sport fans must do before they die). Oh, and countless games at Mackey – an experience that still gives me the goosebumps. As you can see, I have been extremely fortunate to experience all of these things – thanks mostly to my Dad. I must say that this atmosphere ranked up there with an NFL playoff game. It was not quite as crazy as I was imagining but the fans are passionate and the stadium was incredible. You can tell it was built for a grand event (hosting the 2000 Olympics). We were fortunate (read poor) enough to purchase nosebleeds, which meant we were far away from the field but under the cover of the roof – joke’s on the people who spent $200 per ticket and had to sit in the monsoon like weather.

Personally, I just don’t understand rugby. It seems like a very basic, primitive game. They go back and forth clocking each other until someone makes a mistake and the offense scores. Beyond that, I didn’t see much to it. I don’t mean to offend those that do love rugby. I’m sure an Aussie who watched baseball would have the same feelings (also, the game didn’t have peanuts! What kind of athletic event doesn’t sell peanuts. I had to settle for gummy worms with my beer). It’s just an opinion. I think it is crazy how sports fans on the opposite side of the world are equally as passionate about sports but the sports are completely different. It was an experience I will never forget and I am very glad I chose to take advantage of the opportunity. Next on my sports list is an Aussie Rules Football game.


The opposite end of the stadium


It was raining hard but not in the cheap seats!

Cheers

Day 6: That Thud You Just Heard...

…was me falling back to reality. After spending the first four days of my summer in Las Vegas and spending the first five days here in Sydney sightseeing and traveling, I almost forgot there was work to be done this summer. I guess that is why they call it the Sydney INTERNSHIP program and not the Sydney DO NOTHING BUT TRAVEL AROUND AUSTRALIA ON CAPA’S DIME Program – Purdue needs to look into starting such a program.

So today was my first day at my internship site – Macquarie (if you know how to pronounce it, you’re ahead of me) University (Australian say “Uni” because it is cooler and they have a sweet accent, have I mentioned that before?). I think I am really going to enjoy it. I am working in their student experience programs. It deals with everything that is NOT academics; since I do everything but academics (kidding mom and dad) at Purdue it is a perfect fit. My bosses, there’s 3 of them refer to their office as “Fun City”. Needless to say, I am looking forward to working in fun city. After a brief interview/meet-and-greet/me being in awe of their accent, they gave me a tour of their Sports and Aquatic Centre. It is much like a recreational sports facility you would see in America. Perhaps a little smaller and there aren’t as many basketball courts ☹. And in Purdue’s case, Macquarie’s Sports Centre is about 120342810 years newer. C’mon Purdue, my dad used the current co-rec in 1932 (I’m kidding I think it was ’46 ☺). The Uni completely remodeled their facilities two years ago so they are all very nice. They have an outdoor pool that sits in the side of a hill that is probably the highlight of the facility.

After a tour of the sports centre, they gave me a tour of their Campus Hub or what we would call their Student Union. The bottom floor was offices and study areas, the second floor was a very nice food court, the third floor was some more study space and a café, and the fourth floor was a …….drumroll…….bar. Yeah, read that again, very slowly. There is a bar. In the student union. Reason #412 why we love Australia. The University, which is funded by the state, has a bar IN their union. The university hosts a semester-end party in three weeks. Guess what I got invited to? They use their money to host a party at a bar for all the students. Why has this trend not caught on in the states? No, seriously, why not? After they revived me and picked me up off the floor, my tour had pretty much ended. I am really excited to get started…tomorrow. That’s right, I start work tomorrow. I really do think I am going to enjoy it.

I also had my first class today. I am taking intercultural communications because it will help me receive credit towards an international business minor. It is actually going to be pretty enjoyable. My professor, Dr. Felicia Roberts, is from Purdue and extremely interesting. She actually studies linguistics, which means part of her job is studying accents. Anyway, the class is going to be fun and I am looking forward to it.

I am even more excited for the Rugby match I am going to tomorrow. I picked up a Sydney Herald (newspaper. They still exist) today and read the preview. Apparently, last year’s match ended in a brawl and there is still a lot of hatred and unfinished business between most of the players. Every Aussie who has found out I am going has done nothing but talk about how big of a game it is and what the atmosphere is like. I have been to a lot of big sporting events. It will be really interesting to compare this to American events. I am sure my next post will be all about it – get excited all you Rugby lovers.

Sorry I have no new pictures for you. I will hopefully get some pictures of The Uni tomorrow and be able to share that with you. It is a very nice campus. A lot different than West Lafayette in looks and smells (you’ll only get that if you’ve been to Purdue). Well, that is all for now.

Cheers!

Day 5: Socceroos

Nothing too much to report today. It was a pretty uneventful day or as uneventful as a day in Sydney can be. We started it off with our internship orientation meeting. This was two hours of common sense and stating the obvious. It was even more exciting then it sounds. Anyway, after that we had a travel meeting, which was actually really interesting. A travel agency has all these different trips we can do. I just have to decide which trip(s) I want to go on (dear mom and dad, please send money ☺.

After those meetings, I went on a mission. In one of my previous blogs I talked about how we visited Olympic Stadium and there was a big game coming up. That game, State of the Origin, is the biggest rugby match of the year. I want to go. I have to go. Well, that game is actually Wednesday night. I went to a ticket office and purchased eight tickets for part of the big group that all wants to go. All together we purchased 35 tickets and are all sitting together. It is going to be awesome. I really can’t wait.

After returning to my apartment, I found out there was a friendly (exhibition) soccer match between New Zealand and Australia (The Socceroos). Knowing that soccer is huge over here, some of us thought it would be fun to go to a pub and check out the atmosphere for the game. We went to a bar called Cheers and watched the game there with some local Aussies and even some New Zealanders. It was quite the atmosphere. We had a great time. I don’t even like soccer but this game was pretty exciting or so I’ve been told. Australia trailed 0-1 early, tied it in the second half and then scored the winning goal in stoppage time. Although I have trouble getting into soccer, it was fun to be a part of and I am looking forward to going back during the World Cup.

Well, I don’t have any pictures to share today. Day 5 wins the Boringest Blog Award. Tomorrow I have my interview and first class so hopefully there will be more to report then.
Cheers!

DAY 4: PLAINS, TRAINS & AUTOMOBILES…AND BUSES AND MORE TRAINS AND SOME MORE BUSES AND A COUPLE MORE TRAINS.

Today was our first day “off”. There was nothing on the schedule, which provided a great chance to figure out how to get to Macquarie University – where I will be working. It was a great idea…in theory. I had no idea what I was doing and spent a lot of time wandering around and looking like a tourist. What’d I learn? I do not have enough patience for public transportation. The trip that I thought would take one or two hours took 5 or 6 hours.

I headed out at 9 a.m. for Central Station. This is the central hub for almost all off the trains that run out of Sydney. However, they were doing track work and the station was closed to all non-interstate trains.

Plan B: I head to Wynward Train Station to catch a train to Chatswood to get a bus to Macquarie. Simple enough. So I hopped on a bus and made it to Wynward. Hopped on a train and made it to Chatswood. Asked an Aussie where to get a bus to Macquarie and they laughed. They said that I needed to get on a train and take it in. This was good news except for the fact that I had just gotten off the train I needed to be on.

Plan C: I waited for about 25 minutes for the next train and finally made it to Macquarie. One problem, I wasn’t technically allowed to be there. Oh the technicalities. My transportation pass is for Zone 1 and this station laid in Zone 2. When I went to swipe out, the gate didn’t open. I might or might not have had to jump over the gate. Deal with it Sydney, no need to come after this poor college student. I wondered around campus for a good 45 minutes trying to find my workplace and finally found it. It was closed. Perfect. I decided to go ahead and just make my way back to Waterloo. Easier said than done.

Plan D: I tried getting back into Zone 1 via bus but that didn’t work because I accidentally got on the bus out of town instead of in to town. I ended up riding the same bus for about half an hour out and half an hour back. I was back to where I had originally started. For those keeping score at home, I'm about four hours into my day.

Plan E: I was now in Zone 2, back at Macquarie, couldn’t get back in to the train station and this time there was a security guard at the gates - probably my own fault. What’s that they say about Karma? I had to cough up the $3.20 to get back into Zone 1 via train and switched several trains and busses but eventually made it back...5 and a half hours after I left.

I was extremely frustrated and upset that I had wasted most of my free day “navigating” Sydney. However, there was still a glimmer of hope. My roommate Jeramey and I decided to try to go to the Jazz Fest. If you’ve read my previous blogs, you know we were 0 for 2 Friday and Saturday night due to rain. Tonight was a success! If we were playing baseball, we’d be all-stars. Either way, it was awesome and I’m extremely glad we decided to try it one more night. We had a great time. A string duo opened and they were incredible. There is nothing better than sitting in Darling Harbour and listening to Jazz Music. The coolest part was the stage. It was actually set up in the harbor. The stage moved with the water and created an atmosphere like nothing I had ever seen. It was beautiful.

The main act was the winner of Australian Idol. He sang everything from worship songs to Jay-Z and Beyonce. He was truly a musician. It was fun to listen to and even funner (yeah, I know that’s wrong but you know what, it’s my blog. I do what I want) to experience the atmosphere. I have included some videos. His name is Stan Walker. Enjoy!

Okay, it is taking forever to upload the video. Probably due to my internet connection. I will try it again later but for now, here are some pictures.


The stage is literally in the harbor and rocks with the water. It's pretty wild. Surprisingly, the acoustics were pretty good too.


These pictures don't really do it justice. I will try to get video up later.

Cheers!

Day 3: Roos and the Blues

I have been in Sydney for 3 days and I feel like I have done 3 weeks worth of sightseeing, exploring and drugs (kidding, calm down everyone). But in all seriousness, these three days have been absolutely incredible. CAPA, the organization that we are here with, has done a tremendous job of keeping us busy these first three days. Perhaps the busiest and best day of the three occurred today.

My day began bright and early at the café around the corner. I’m making a habit of this. The free wifi is the main draw but the coffee isn’t too bad either. At 8:00 a.m. myself and the other Purdue Internet addicts headed from the café back to our apartment complex to board a coach bus that would take us all over Sydney for the day.

First stop: Olympic park. Sydney hosted the 2000 Summer Olympics. I remember this fondly because I was sick during them and did nothing but lie on the couch and watch the Olympics while my awesome mom took care of me. I tried “milking” that bug for all it was worth (sorry mom). Anyway, being the sport junkie (understatement) that I am, I absolutely loved the place and wanted to spend more time there, which I think I might do. According to our tour guide (his name was Bob but since he’s an Aussie, it is pronounced Bub) there is a huge “footie” game there coming up at the end of May. Apparently, it is the biggest game of the year and you can still get tickets since the stadium is so big. I know what you’re thinking – what’s footie? So am I. I’ll figure it out when I get there. I’m assuming it’s soccer, rugby or Aussie rules football. I just hope it’s footie and not footsie – that’d be disappointing.

Second Stop: Featherdale Wildlife Park. This place was crazy. Essentially, it was a zoo. The twist is, only a few of the animals are caged (read crocodile). There were wallabees, kangaroos, emus and other random animals running around all over the place. Made for some cool and funny photos. Needless to say we had a great time and it was really cool to actually get up close with some of Australia’s icons (see the photos below).

Third Stop: Lunch. Fish and Chips – ‘nuff said.

Fourth Stop: Blue Mountains. This was the highlight of the day. The Blue Mountains aren’t blue and aren’t mountains – those silly blokes. It’s actually a plateau that has eroded over time to create a canyon according to Bub (I trust him, he has an accent). I have been fortunate enough to visit the Grand Canyon and this place gave me a lot of the same feelings. Pictures don’t do it justice and you can’t quite describe it to anyone who hasn’t been there. It’s breath-taking and awe inspiring. Just looking wasn’t enough. Bub decided it was a good idea to hike down into the canyon and then back up. So off he went – myself and the rest of the group followed him (again, he has an accent). Approximately 2.5 hours and 2500 stairs later we were back where we started. It was exhausting but worth every step. The views were incredible. Truly unlike anything else I will ever see or do.

Our day wasn’t done. When we got back, I actually cooked my own dinner. Made some wheat pasta with some grilled chicken, pasta sauce and mozzarella cheese (be proud mom). As I was eating that, a group of like 6 or 7 came down the stairs into the kitchen and said c’mon we’re going to the jazz festival. I was planning on going but not that instant. Scarfed down the rest of my meal and off I went. So we made it to Darling Harbor, home of the Jazz festival, to find nothing but empty stages. We missed the music but it was still an awesome atmosphere and we will go back tomorrow and actually catch some music. Mom and Dad, you can stop reading now.

So we decided as a group we wanted to go find a Pub or Club and spend our first night “out” in Sydney. There were lots to choose from but finally we settled on the Shark Hotel or something like that. Anyway, it’s not much different than America. They play American music and the atmosphere is much the same. The only difference – 18-year olds. It’s kind of weird but oh well. I had my first Australian beer. It was called Toohey’s and tasted just like crappy American light beer. Oh well.


Olympic Stadium. I'll be back.



Myself and a Wallabee or Kangaroo, you be the judge. The goofy look on my face is because my camera is so delayed.



Myself and a Koala. They are so soft. I tried stealing it, I really did.


Me and this guy hung out for quite some time. He was the nicest of all the Kangaroos - that's a fact.



Aussies are very literal. For instance, this means yield and instead of having exit signs, they have "way out" signs.



So many incredible photos from the Blue Mountains



The famous 3 sisters. And yes, we hiked to the bottom of the canyon and back.


The Gondola that all the sissy tourists take. Hardcore Aussies like me and Bub just hike. I am man, hear me roar.



Waterfall but I guess you probably figured that out.


Proof that we did make it back to the top.


There is absolutely nothing planned tomorrow and I am looking forward to it after these first three days. I think I am going to try to find my workplace and then probably hit the jazz fest. Until then…

Cheers!

Day 2: Tourist to Townie

I have several goals while here in Sydney. The main goal? Master the Australian accent. All other goals are secondary (sorry mom and dad). However, one of the more important secondary goals is to become intertwined in the Australian culture. Seven weeks probably isn’t enough time to become completely immersed (check out my vocabulary) but it allows me to be more than just a tourist. Today, I had my first culture “mishaps”. There’s only one way to learn and that is by making mistakes and making mistakes I definitely did.

My first misstep came while we were touring Australian Catholic University (ACU). This is where we will be attending class over the next seven weeks. We were in the library and I was looking for a bathroom. I found a friendly looking student and simply asked, “Where is the bathroom?” This student looked at me like I had four heads. I quickly realized that they don’t have “bathrooms”. Aussies refer to bathrooms as “loos” or “ladies and gents”. I had just learned this in our meeting but could not recall it immediately. Instead, I compounded my mistake by saying, “I mean restrooms, uhhhh I mean toilets, uhhhhh I mean loos”. Finally, she realized what I needed and directed me in the right way.

After our brief tour of ACU and our orientation meeting, we headed on a charter tour of the Sydney. At lunch, I had another opportunity to do as the Aussies do. We stopped and ate at the famous Harry’s Café de Wheels. Harry’s serves world famous meatpies. Meat. Pie. Can’t possibly go wrong with this combination. I chose the Chicken Meatpie which consisted of a pie crust, chicken, mushrooms, cheese, mashed potatoes, peas, heaven, love and gold (okay, I can’t confirm those last three ingredients but I’m pretty sure they were in there somewhere). It was delicious. I understand why they are world famous. After leaving Harry’s, we went through the rest of Sydney, which included some spectacular views. Sydney is incredibly large and spans an amazing amount of land. I’m not even sure if seven weeks is enough time to enjoy everything.

After heading back to our apartment, I decided I wanted to make use of our complex’s gym. Meet mistake #2: Walked into the gym over to the weight rack and picked up the 30 lb. dumbbells. Either I needed a Snickers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1Sv_z9jm8A) or had become extremely weak in five days. OR I completely forgot that Aussies use the metric system which means that 30 KILOGRAM dumbbell equaled 66 lbs. However, I wasn’t done with the culture mishaps.

After working out one of my roommates, Jeramey, and two others decided to go to the Jazz Festival at Darling Harbor. I showered, got ready (obviously I looked good), and was ready to go. Went downstairs, headed out of our complex and it was pouring. We decided against the Jazz festival and instead went to grab a bite to eat. We went into Waterloo and picked out a neat little Pizza place called Wood & Stone. The Pizza was delicious. Jeramey and I split a pizza and practically inhaled it. After finishing we were looking around and both noticed the same thing. Every single person was using a fork and knife – even the boy sitting at the table next to us who couldn’t have been older than five. Think we looked like tourists? We were ready to pay and leave. We were waiting and waiting and waiting for our check. In this time, Jeramey made awkward eye contact with our waiter and our waiter didn’t even budge in the war of patience. Finally, I asked for the check and we paid. After paying we went ahead and asked our waiter who was very friendly (friendly and Australian are synonymous). He said most places make you ask for the check in Australia (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3rhQc666Sg). However, we did make one step in the right direction. We didn’t tip. Tipping is not expected in Australia because most of the servers make around $15 an hour!

It may take time but I will eventually learn these cultural differences and become an Aussie or maybe just a poser. But either way, I will have fun doing it.


Harry's Cafe de Wheels


Meat. Pie.


1st stop on the bus tour.


2nd stop: Bondi Beach. This is where the beach volleyball matches were played during the Olympics in 2000.


3rd stop


View of the Central Business District from our 3rd stop.

Again, I have many more pictures I will upload to facebook but for now, that is all.


Cheers!

Day 1: What a day!

I arrived at our apartment complex at approximately 7:30 a.m. Sydney time Thursday morning. This means in Indiana time it was uh….um….May? I was a little nervous about our apartment. I had done some research online and the pictures looked nice. However, I was still worried - the pictures may not have told the whole story.

There was no reason to be worried. Our apartment is incredible. It is two levels, has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a living room and three balconies. You could tell me I was going to live in a place like it in 15 years and I think I’d be okay with it. I got unpacked, showered, watched some Rugby, “ooohhhed” and “ahhhed” at some Rugby and just chatted with my roommates – all of whom I like. At 11:00 we had to head down to take a tour of the surrounding area. This is where the fun began…

I assumed that Sydney would most likely resemble a big city such as New York or Chicago. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Sydney is comprised of small towns (they call them suburbs even though they are technically in Sydney) and we live in the Waterloo suburb. We took a walking tour of this area. It has an incredible small town feel. The streets are lined with full-grown trees, shops and restaurants. It was really cool and I am really looking forward to learning more about the area. At the end of the tour, we were given the option of either heading back to our apartment complex and doing some grocery shopping, organizing, etc. or getting on a train or bus and heading “downtown”. My roommates decided to head back to the apartment. I wanted to do some more exploring so I played tag-along with another group of Purdue students and headed to the train station.

You know what’s funny? Wondering around like a bunch of tourists who have no idea what they’re doing and just watching locals smirk at you. So what’d we do? We hopped on a random train – the obvious decision. We honestly had no idea where we were going. We waited two or three stops and got off at a stop that seemed to be popular since nearly everyone else was exiting the train. We wandered around some more and eventually made our way out of the station. An absolutely gorgeous view of the Sydney Harbor Bridge greeted us. It hit me! We are in Sydney. It was honestly one of the coolest experiences of my life and we weren’t done yet.

We were wandering around looking for a place to eat and we “stumbled” upon the Syndey Opera House - THE Sydney Opera House. I had been in Sydney for less than eight hours and already seen two of Australia’s greatest landmarks. It was UNREAL! We grabbed some lunch and literally ate in the shadows of the Opera House. As an aside, I enjoy trying new things especially when it comes to food and I am looking forward to some of the unique cuisine in Australia (call me weird if you want, I understand). I had my first opportunity at the Opera House. I had a smoked salmon (practically raw) and cream cheese sandwich. It was delicious. The view probably didn’t hurt things either. I can’t begin to describe how beautiful the Harbor is. It’s phenomenal. Truly a 360-degree view. We did some more wandering around and eventually headed back to our apartment complex.

It’s currently 5:00 p.m. here and the sun has pretty much set (only causing my body more confusion). I am sitting in a café around the block from our apartment complex making use of their free wifi. I am having a great time and can’t wait to see what else Sydney has in store for me. Until next time…

Cheers! (That's Australian mate)


Living Room


View from 1 of our 3 balconies


My Bedroom


The Mystery Train


The "light at the end of the tunnel"


No big deal or anything

I have tons more pictures, I will upload them to facebook at somepoint if you want to see them all.

"What time is it?" "You mean now?"

The above exchange took place between Hall of Fame Yankee catcher Yogi Berra and a New York Sports reporter. In Yogi’s case, his response (the “you mean now” part) didn’t make much sense but nothing he said ever made much sense. However, this exchange seems like the perfect way to describe a 24-hour journey, 17-hour time-change and 15-hour flight. I never had a Wednesday, May 19th, which also happens to be my dad’s birthday (Happy Birthday Dad!).

So here I am, sitting in a café (using their free wifi) on a Thursday afternoon. It’s 4:00 p.m. and the sun is setting. Needless to say, my internal clock is left feeling more confused than Ms. South Carolina trying to answer a geography question
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lj3iNxZ8Dww).

The plane flight from San Francisco to Sydney was about 15 hours. The plane we flew on was a friggin’ behemoth (yes, that is a technical term). I had never seen anything so big. It was as if someone took a ten-story building, turned it on its side and attached wings. I was in awe. Here’s a picture (http://images1.fanpop.com/images/photos/1500000/space-ship-star-trek-1509533-540-304.jpg). Okay, I lied but you get the point. Since there were approximately a gazillion seats on the flying building and not that many people on planet earth, there was actually room to spread out and even lie down on the plane. I found my row created a bed with the complimentary pillows and passed out half way through the movie “Leap Year”. I slept on and off for a majority of the flight. It wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated. A little bumpy considering the size of the spacecraft (plane) but nothing too bad. The only negative was that my window seat was basically pointless since the entire fifteen hours were spent in complete darkness minus the last twenty minutes in which I was rewarded with a picturesque sunrise. There’s a picture below.

So after reading two and a half books, spending nearly 24 hours flying, sitting, eating, waiting, and listening to an incredible amount of music, I arrived safely in Sydney. I am ready to embark on this journey and looking forward to everything Australia has in store for me.



My picture of the sunset from the plane. Okay, so I haven't mastered taking a photo through a window yet but trust me, it's there.

Allow Me To Introduce Myself

Hello “blog world”. I feel like Julie in the movie “Julie & Julia”, not that I’ve ever seen that chick-flick before (I lied. I watched it but it was with my mom, which makes it okay). This will hopefully serve as a place for me to share my experiences, vent or entertain my followers – all three of you.

Well, today is my last day in the states for quite some time. It is all really beginning to sink in now. I am filled with mixed emotions. I am excited, nervous, anxious, and curious. I’m just not real sure what to expect. I have been abroad before to England with my family but I have never traveled alone. It is going to be a challenge but one that I am looking forward to (minus the nearly 24 hours it will take me to get to Sydney).

I will be working at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. Specifically, in their U@MQ department. This is the university’s campus experience department, which includes the sport programs that the university has. From my understanding, I will be working with these sports programs but that is not definite. I still am not sure what my role will be within the organization but I am looking forward to getting started and making the most of my opportunity.

There are some people I would like to thank for making this all possible. The Purdue study abroad department has done a great job of preparing us for this journey and giving us all of the resources we need. This has been a relatively easy experience considering the magnitude of the distance I will be traveling. I also owe a thank you to Debbi Bearden and Sara White. These two wrote outstanding letters of recommendation for me – a very important step in the application process. Most of all, I need to thank my family. I am extremely blessed and fortunate. Both of my sisters studied abroad in England and introduced my parents to the idea. My sisters had a great time and when it came time for me to go to college my parents were encouraging me to study abroad. Not to mention, this is quite the financial commitment and my parents have been so gracious in helping me on this journey.

I leave tomorrow for an once-in-a-lifetime journey. I will keep everyone updated and be sure to take lots of pictures (a gene I received from my father). Thanks for taking the time to follow me and I look forward to sharing my experiences with everyone.